October Skyes
by AddictedToStrawberries
Summary: Claire has just settled in Forget-Me-Not-Valley, a lively town with many friends... and foes? Recently Romana has been having trouble with a clever thief who always gets away with his escapades. How will Claire react when she encounters this charmer?


**The Thief That Stole My Heart **by AddictedtoStrawberries**  
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_(An original from Quizilla)_

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_(From now on, the gray lines indicate a short time-skip.)_

"Have you heard? Lumina told me that someone broke into her grandmother's mansion again!" My head whipped up in surprise from reading my book. I sat up straight in my barstool and turned my ear slightly towards the group of gossiping villagers to listen.

"Oh dear! What did they take this time? Nothing expensive I hope." Ruby had a worried expression on her face.

"Mostly just some China from the kitchen." reassured Vesta, "But the old lady's completely shaken. She wants some people to keep watch over her mansion from now on. They've gotten another warning that he'll strike again! In fact, Marvin is going down there tonight. But she's paying them generously of course."

I looked down at my book again to think. This wasn't the first time Romana had valuables stolen from her. Whoever this person was, he/she was dangerous. But, maybe I could help out anyway - all chores and duties were taken care of tonight, and I really needed the extra money to do some renovations at my house.

"Excuse me, do you think... I could come too?"I asked suddenly. Startled, they looked at me to see who had spoken. When they saw my curious face, they looked at each other nervously. "I suppose.. you could.." started Vesta, "-but you don't know who you're dealing with Claire, it could be very dangerous!" Ruby nodded in agreement. I shrugged my shoulders, "It's alright, I'm not that fragile. I work my own farm, remember? Do you know what time they're supposed to meet at the mansion, Vesta?"

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"Hiya Marvin!" I waved, as I rode my horse, Copper, up the steep hill. He gave me a short glance, and nodded in my direction, but put a finger to his mouth to let me know I was to be quiet. I mirrored his actions, a little embarrassed, and I made a effort to quietly lower myself from Copper's saddle.

As I hooked the reins to a tree branch, Rock came up to greet me, grinning. He took my hand and led me to his station. Apparently, he wanted me to keep watch of outside Romana's bedroom window with him. He stopped under the window and turned to smile at me.

"I'm glad you came." he whispered, "So, how great is this, like almost like a movie, right? We're gonna catch a villain, I'm so psyched."

I smiled happily, aware of the fact that he was still holding my hand, I've had a little crush on Rock for a couple months now. "Yeah," I agreed, "..it's great."

Just then, all the lights in the property went out. The others ran to stations in confusion, shouting at each other. Rock tore his hand from my grasp and suddenly bumped into me in attempt to get near where the front door used to be. "Sorry!" he grunted, before running off into the building.

The I heard glass shatter above me, landing all around. I sharply exhaled as I felt shards slice my cheek. But the stinging was immediately forgotten as I saw a dark shadow pass over me, the moonlit sky outlining the dark shape, but concealing the fine details. As I saw it land, I ran in its direction, assuming that it was the rumored burglar. "Stop!" I cried, following his retreating figure. I felt like my legs couldn't carry me fast enough, I was sprinting, but the thief was so much faster. At one point lost my footing over the items people had left on the ground and tripped. A familiar eerie shriek was heard, followed by the sound of hooves hitting the ground, slowly fading away.

And that's when it hit me, he had taken my horse.

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"Claire! You're hurt!" exclaimed Lumina, as she ran outside. I looked up at her, too ashamed to meet her worried expression. "Sorry." I mumbled, "I let him go." She gave me a warm hug, rubbing my back, "It's fine Claire, we'll catch him next time. Let me fix up that nick on your cheek."

I sighed, my horse was stolen by some thief, and I would gladly let the cheek scar if it meant that Copper would be returned to me. "I'll go get something to clean it!" I watched her orange dress disappear behind the front doors.

"Hey, uh - I'm sorry about what happened." Marvin had his hands in his pockets as he approached me, and looked up at me carefully, to see if he had tread on any unwanted territory. I gave him a weak smile to show that I appreciated his sympathy, but I still felt bitterness eating at me, and it showed. He scratched his head, thinking of something comforting to say. "...Cheer up. Once we catch this guy- and that will be very soon-we'll be sure to get your horse back."

"Thanks." was all I could answer, the rest caught in my throat. I had screwed up today, and I paid the price for it.

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I watched Marvin, Gustafa, Cody, and Griffin leave the courtyard. Later on, Rock offered to walk me home, but I told him I didn't want to trouble anyone, and politely refused his invitation. Right now, I just wanted to be alone. Staring into the fountain, I eyed the band-aid that was carefully placed on my face. Was it really worth it to come and help? I hurriedly sprinted back to my farm as the night got colder. As I did my nightly walk around the barn, I noticed something, I had forgotten to feed the horse! By tomorrow she would be starving, and I doubted that the thief would care to feed him. 'Great, just great.' I sighed, shaking my head. More to worry about.

And then I heard a soft whinny from outside. A rush of adrenaline pulsed through me. "Could it be?" I wondered excitedly, hurrying to the source of the sound. I pushed open the wooden door, and scanned the area for a sign of my horse.

"Looking for us?" a calm voice asked.

I whipped around to look at the farm entrance, and saw a teenager with silver hair walking toward me, walking Copper beside him. Wearing a gray sleeveless shirt and jeans, I was at his mercy as I stared. He was amazingly handsome, far more pleasing to the eye than anyone in town. He smiled at me knowingly, and stopped five feet away from where I was, "This is yours right? I came to return him to you." I nodded, in awe at his presence. He chuckled, and teased, "Fallen in love with me already? We just met!" I analyzed the stranger, and noticed some sparkling jewelry in a open knapsack on his back.

This snapped me back to reality, and I forced my face to scowl, "You're right, I should know better than to fall in love with a dirty thief like you."

His eyes widened for a moment, and he smiled slyly, "Oh, so you've figured it out. Rather sharp, aren't you?" He pointed his finger as if to accuse me, "CHICK BEAM!" There was a flash of light, and my body froze immediately, I couldn't move my arms... legs... anything! That beam of his had completely paralyzed me! He closed the space between us, and gently touched my cheek, "It's a shame you had to be caught in the whole thing, and I apologize for damaging this pretty face of yours.." He kissed over the band-aid, and my face went red. "I hope it heals quickly." the thief winked, "Well, until we meet again!" He disappeared into the night, leaving me and my horse dumbfounded.

-_To be Continued-_

_(This was my first fan-fiction! I wrote it years ago and finally put it up on here. Please Rate & Review! Thanks.)_


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